States have the capacity and must cut duty on petrol: NITI Aayog

States have the capacity and must reduce the duty on petrol, while the Centre should create fiscal space to deal with the impact of spurt in oil prices, NITI Aayog vice chairman Rajiv Kumar said today.

The rising crude prices in the international market prompted state-owned oil companies to raise domestic prices for 11th day in a row. Petrol costs Rs 77.47 a litre in Delhi and diesel Rs 68.53 a litre.

“There is merit in reducing the duties but both by the states and and the Centre. More so for the states as they tax the oil on ad valorem basis … So states can take that cut much more and better than the Union government,” Kumar told PTI in an interview.

He further said that it is important for them (states) to agree 10-15 per cent duty cut and take home the same amount of tax revenue as budgeted. “Not doing that means being exceptionally greedy at the cost of not just the people but also the economy,” Kumar added. Read More